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Table of contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Quick Start 1: Configure the Quick Start steps for configuring the system ................................................................ 23
Step 1: Add users to the FactoryTalk Directory .................................................. 23
system
Step 2: Add client computers ................................................................................... 25
Step 3: Configure security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre ................................... 26
Policy settings and their meanings .................................................................. 27
Step 4: Add contacts to the Address Book ............................................................ 28
Step 5: Set up FactoryTalk AssetCentre database limitations .......................... 30
Step 6: Configure the SSL protocol ........................................................................ 31
Create an SSL certificate ................................................................................... 31
Export the created SSL certificate for FactoryTalk AssetCentre client and
agent computers .................................................................................................. 34
Configure a site binding .................................................................................... 36
Configure SSL settings for FactoryTalk AssetCentre Web Client .......... 39
Turn on secure communication between the server, client(s), and agent(s)41
Rockwell Automation Publication - FTAC-GR002E-EN-E - February 2019 3
Table of contents
Chapter 5
Quick Start 2: Design the Quick Start steps for designing the asset tree................................................................ 59
Step 1: Plan the organization of your asset tree .................................................... 59
asset tree
Step 2: Add assets to the asset tree .......................................................................... 61
Use Asset Inventory to add assets to the asset tree ...................................... 63
Step 3: Change security settings for an asset ......................................................... 66
Chapter 6
Quick Start 3: Set up Disaster Quick Start steps for setting up schedules ..................................................................... 70
Step 1: Set up Agent Groups and agent computers in them.............................. 70
Recovery schedules
Create an agent group........................................................................................ 71
Create an agent computer................................................................................. 71
Step 2: Create a schedule for the desired Disaster Recovery operation ........... 72
Step 3: Set up recipient lists for schedule results .................................................. 73
Send an End of Schedule report ...................................................................... 74
Send an operation-specific report.................................................................... 74
Step 4: Run schedules ................................................................................................ 75
Run schedules by making them active ............................................................ 75
Run schedules manually .................................................................................... 75
Chapter 7
Quick Start 4: View and Quick Start steps for viewing and searching logs ......................................................... 78
Step 1: View logs ......................................................................................................... 78
search logs
Step 2: Create a search ............................................................................................... 80
Step 3: Set search security ......................................................................................... 84
Step 4: Run searches................................................................................................... 85
Make a search active ........................................................................................... 85
Run searches manually....................................................................................... 85
Step 5: View and print search results ...................................................................... 86
Chapter 8
Quick Start 5: Open and edit Quick Start steps for managing files in Archive ........................................................... 88
Step 1: Set a working folder ...................................................................................... 88
files in Archive
Step 2: Check out a file for editing ......................................................................... 89
Chapter 9
Quick Start 6: Manage Quick Start steps for managing Rockwell Automation hardware life cycle ........... 97
Step 1: Synchronize life-cycle status ....................................................................... 97
Rockwell Automation
Step 2: Refresh life-cycle status ................................................................................ 98
hardware life cycle Step 3: View detailed life-cycle status ..................................................................... 99
Chapter 10
This manual is intended to give a general overview of the software. For more
detailed information, please refer to FactoryTalk AssetCentre Help.
FactoryTalk AssetCentre Help FactoryTalk AssetCentre Help is available from the Help menu, by pressing F1 or
clicking the Show Help button, or by clicking the Help button on any dialog box
in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre software.
About this book This manual provides you with information on how to get started using your
FactoryTalk AssetCentre system. It is not intended to be a comprehensive users
guide. For complete information on all features, tasks, and interface elements, refer
to Help.
This book is written for FactoryTalk AssetCentre users. We assume you are
familiar with:
Contact Technical Support If you cannot find answers to your questions in this manual, Help, or on the
Technical Support Web site, call Technical Support.
If you are not located in the USA and want to contact Rockwell Automation
Support by telephone, go to
https://www.rockwellautomation.com/global/support/overview.page , click
Local and Contact Support, click Phone, and then select your region and
country for information about contacting your local support organization.
When you call you should be at your computer and be prepared to give the
following information:
For information about all of the products available from Rockwell Software or for
technical support, go to one of the following sites:
• https://www.rockwellautomation.com/rockwellsoftware/overview.page
• https://www.rockwellautomation.com/global/support/overview.page
• https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com
AssetCentre client • Using Windows Search, find FactoryTalk AssetCentre Client, and then
double-click the name.
If the client fails to start properly, see If the client fails to start on page 101.
1. Menu bar
2. Toolbar
3. Asset view
4. Workspace pane
• Address Book
• Agent Groups
• Archive
• Assets Lifecycle
• Calibration
• DTM View
• Logs
• Schedules
• Searches
5. Asset catalog
Available in the design mode, it lists all the types of assets that you can add
to the assets tree in the asset view.
6. Status bar
Asset view Everything that you do in FactoryTalk AssetCentre begins with an asset. The
Asset View shows the asset tree, a representation of your plant. In the asset tree,
you can include all of the assets (anything from a device to a program to a
procedure document) that you want to control, back up, or monitor.
• Set up or modify the asset tree in the Asset View so that it represents your
system.
• Add devices to the asset tree from the Asset Catalog or edit devices already
in the asset tree. The Asset Catalog is only shown in Design mode.
• Set up or modify the agent group tree in the Agent Groups plug-in.
To enter Design mode, click the Design button in the Asset View. The Design
button toggles Design mode on and off. You can also, on the Menu bar, select
Edit > Design Mode or press F3. Only one user in your system can be in Design
mode at a time.
Tip: You must have Switch to Design mode permission to enter Design mode. See
Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
If you have Switch to Design mode permission and still cannot enter Design
mode to view the Asset Catalog, see If you can’t enter Design Mode on page 103.
Asset catalog The Asset Catalog lists all the types of assets that can be added to the asset tree.
The Asset Catalog is only available when the Asset View is in Design mode. In
Design mode, you will use the Asset Catalog to select and add assets by dragging
them from the Asset Catalog to the asset tree. For information about adding assets
to the asset tree, see Step 2: Add assets to the asset tree on page 61.
The Asset Catalog can be positioned either below the Asset View or beside the
Asset View.
• To position the Asset Catalog below the Asset View, select View > Layout
> Split Horizontally.
• To position the Asset Catalog beside and to the right of the Asset View,
select View > Layout > Split Vertically.
• Device Items
• Files and Folder Items
• Organizational Items
• Process Devices
Device Items
Devices can be placed in the asset tree in the root or in a container. Device assets,
except for Asset Inventory and Generic Device, count toward capacity activation.
Most device assets are used with the Disaster Recovery capability. A device is a
physical automation device. Available device assets are Rockwell Automation
controllers; Siemens SIMANTIC S7 processors; Rockwell Automation PanelView
operator interfaces; PanelView Plus operator interfaces; Stratix Managed
Switches; MobileView operator interfaces; FTP Devices, including a variety of
robots; Rockwell Automation drives; remote computers; and Custom Devices.
Tip: Starting from version 9.00, FactoryTalk AssetCentre does not support Siemens
SIMANTIC S5 processors.
The following asset types also belong to the Devices Items category:
• Asset Inventory
Use this asset type to scan physical automation devices on the network.
When you run a backup or backup and compare schedule on an Asset
Inventory asset, the Asset Inventory agent service scans the connected
devices and computers on the network and stores unique identification
information about hardware, firmware, and software in the backup data.
You can open the backup data in grid view to see the detailed scanning
result of devices and associated software. You can also add the scanned assets
to the asset tree or update assets in the asset tree with different properties.
• FactoryTalk Directory
Use this asset type to run a schedule that backs up the FactoryTalk
Directory of your system on a regular basis.
• Generic Device
Use this asset type to add unsupported devices to the asset tree. Future
versions will support additional device types, such as valves, sensors, pumps,
and so on. Future versions will also support compound assets such as a
mixing tank with several associated devices: sensors, valves, a pump, a logic
controller, and so on.
• Remote Computer
Use this asset type with the Disaster Recovery capability to back up and
verify the contents of a specified shared folder on a computer in the system.
A binder asset is used to specify which files within the shared folder should
be operated on. For more information click Help on the dialog boxes that
are shown when adding a remote computer and binder to the asset tree.
These types of assets can be placed under any device or container in the asset tree.
Organizational Items
Process Devices
Process devices can be placed in the asset tree in the root or in a container. Process
Device assets count toward capacity activation.
Process Device assets are used with the Calibration Management capability. (The
Instrument asset in this category is also used with the Process Device
Configuration capability.) Process device assets are used to control or measure
process variables such as temperature, level, flow, pressure, or pH. These devices
are used to calibrate other process devices, are themselves calibrated, or are used to
create logical groupings for calibration procedures.
• Equipment assets are not calibrated and are used to group together multiple
instruments and loops (which are calibrated) that make up a larger device
such as a boiler or extruder. Equipment records may also be used to group
together assets that are related, but not necessarily connected, such as a
manufacturing line. By grouping all process devices for calibration under an
equipment asset, calibration activity for that piece of equipment can easily
be organized and managed. They can be placed under system process
devices.
• Instrument assets are single devices used in the process, control, or
laboratory system that require calibration. They are stand-alone
components that are building blocks for more complex devices. Examples
are meters, calipers, sensors, oscilloscopes, transmitters, and gauges. They
can be placed under system, loop, and equipment process devices.
Instrument assets can be used with the Process Device Configuration
capability provided they have a DTM.
Workspace pane
The Workspace Pane shows the information and controls for the FactoryTalk
AssetCentre tools: Archive, Schedules, Logs, Searches, Agent Groups, and Address
Book. Once a tool is selected, it appears on a tab in the Workspace Pane:
2. Tabs appear on the Workspace Pane for each tool that is open.
3. The tool that you are currently using is displayed in the Workspace pane.
Additional tabs may appear if you have purchased and installed additional
FactoryTalk AssetCentre capabilities (such as Disaster Recovery or Calibration
Management). Use the Workspace Pane to:
• Set up and run schedules. See Quick Start 3: Set up Disaster Recovery
schedules on page 69.
• View and search logs. See Quick Start 4: View and search logs on page 77.
• Manage file versions in Archive. See Quick Start 5: Open and edit files in
Archive on page 87.
• Perform additional tasks depending on additional capabilities you have
purchased and installed.
Toolbar The following table lists the FactoryTalk AssetCentre client toolbar buttons and
provides a brief description of each button’s functions:
Button Description
Adds a new item such as an asset, schedule, search, or Address Book contact or
New group, depending on what is selected and has focus in the rest of the window. This
button is unavailable if nothing can be added (for example, if the Asset View has
focus, but is not in Design mode).
Available only when information (such as a schedule or search) has been edited, but
Save not yet saved.
Available only when viewing a log. Prints either the selected records or all records
Print listed.
Combined with the Paste button, the Cut button moves an asset from one location
Cut in the tree to another. Select the asset, then click the Cut button. Click on the
container in which you want to place the asset, then click the Paste button. The
asset that was cut does not disappear from its original location until it is pasted in
the new location.
Combined with the Paste button, the Copy button duplicates an asset in the tree.
Copy First select the asset and click the Copy button. Next select the container in which
you want to place the asset, then click the Paste button.
Combined with the Cut (or Copy) button, the Paste button moves (or copies) an
Paste asset from one location in the tree to another. Select the asset, then click the Cut (or
Copy) button. Click on the container in which you want to place the asset, then click
the Paste button.
Deletes the selected asset (if in Design mode), search, schedule, or Address Book
Delete contact or group. This has the same function as the Delete button on the Asset
View toolbar, Search toolbar, and Schedules toolbar.
Opens or shifts focus to the Asset View. This view contains the asset tree that you
create to represent your system. For more information about the asset tree, see
Quick Start 2: Design the asset tree on page 59.
Opens the Agent Groups tab on which you can manage the agents into groups. If
the tab is open, it brings the Agent Groups tab to the front.
Opens or shifts focus to the Archive tab. Archive is FactoryTalk AssetCentre’s source
control tool that you will use to manage file versions. For more information, see
Quick Start 5: Open and edit files in Archive on page 87.
Opens the Assets Lifecycle tab on which you can synchronize life-cycle information
in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server and client with the data on the Rockwell
Automation life cycle website , or refresh life-cycle information in the AssetCentre
client with the AssetCentre server.
Opens or shifts focus to the Calibration tab where you can view general and
calibration information for the process device selected in the asset tree. Only
available if the Calibration Management capability is activated.
Opens the DTM View tab for viewing and editing DTM information for the DTM
device selected in the asset tree. Unlike the other tabs mentioned here, clicking this
button if a DTM View tab is open does not simply bring the tab to the front. Instead
it opens another DTM View tab. You can open multiple DTM View tabs, each one
showing information for another device. Only available if the Process Device
Configuration capability is activated and if the DTM catalog has been scanned at
least once on this computer.
Opens or shifts focus to the Logs tab. This tab allows you to view any of the logs --
the Audit Log, the Event Log, and the Diagnostics & Health Log. For more
information, see Quick Start 4: View and search logs on page 77.
Opens or shifts focus to the Schedules tab where you can set up scheduled
operations such as Backup and Backup and Compare. For more information, see
Quick Start 3: Set up Disaster Recovery schedules on page 69.
Opens or shifts focus to the Searches tab where you can search the logs or the
Archive history. For more information, see Quick Start 4: View and search logs on
page 77.
Shows the properties of the selected item: an asset in the Asset View or a contact in
Properties the Address Book, for example. For an asset, you can only edit the properties if the
Asset View is in Design mode.
Shows the online help related to the part of the software you are currently using.
Show Help
Menu bar Any menu can be clicked or opened by holding down the Alt key and pressing the
underlined letter in the menu name. For example, to show the Tools menu, press
Alt-t. For information on any menu command, refer to the About the Menu Bar
topic of the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Help.
Right-click menus Right-click menus provide access to most functions in the FactoryTalk
AssetCentre client and are available throughout the software. For example,
right-click in the Asset View, on an asset in the Asset View, or in the Workspace
Pane to see a list of functions particular to that item.
Status bar The Status Bar at the bottom of the FactoryTalk AssetCentre window shows the
currently logged on FactoryTalk user and the status of the connection to the
server. It also shows the number of FactoryTalk AssetCentre agents running in the
system. If the server status is Disconnected see If the client cannot communicate
with the server on page 102.
It is required that you use the SSL protocol with FactoryTalk AssetCentre Mobile
Client. See Step 6: Configure the SSL protocol on page 31.
AssetCentre Web Client 1. Open the device's browser, and type the following address:
https://FQDN/RockwellSoftware/AssetCentreWebClient
Tip: FQDN is the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server computer.
If you are changed the default port in site binding on page 36, you need to include
the self-defined port number in the computer name part in the form as
MYSERVER:PortNumber.
2. On the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Web Client page, type the user name and
the password.
Tip: Make sure to create a FactoryTalk Service Platform account and its password on the
computer running FactoryTalk AssetCentre server. The account and password are
used to log on to FactoryTalk AssetCentre Web Client.
After installing the FactoryTalk AssetCentre software, there are several steps you
must perform to start using the software. The next several chapters of this guide
take you through the steps required to quickly get results using FactoryTalk
AssetCentre.
This current chapter will concentrate only on the steps necessary to configure your
FactoryTalk AssetCentre system.
Step 1: Add users to the A user must have a FactoryTalk Directory user account in order to use
FactoryTalk Directory FactoryTalk AssetCentre.
Tip: This section contains only basic instructions for using the FactoryTalk Directory and
FactoryTalk Security. For background information and information regarding more
advanced procedures, please see the Help for the FactoryTalk Administration
Console.
4. Under the Users and Groups folder, right-click the Users folder, and then
select New.
For more detailed instructions on adding users and grouping users, refer to the
FactoryTalk Administration Console Help.
Step 2: Add client computers Before adding a client computer to the FactoryTalk AssetCentre system, install
the FactoryTalk AssetCentre client software on a computer that meets the system
requirements and is connected to the same network as the FactoryTalk
AssetCentre server.
1. Open Internet Explorer, and in the Address box, type the following:
http://servername/rockwellsoftware/assetcentre
http://MYSERVER/rockwellsoftware/assetcentre
Tip: • If you are using SSL, then start the address with https:// instead of http://.
• If you have changed the default port in site binding on page 36, you need to
include the self-defined port number in the computer name part in the form as
MYSERVER:PortNumber.
• If you install the FactoryTalk AssetCentre agent software on the FactoryTalk
AssetCentre server computer, type the following in the Address box:
http://localhost/rockwellsoftware/assetcentre
2. Press Enter.
Internet Explorer shows a page from the server that allows you to install the
FactoryTalk AssetCentre client software.
Tip: If Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6 is not installed on your computer, the page also
provides the installation of .NET Framework 4.6. Follow the on-screen instructions
to install .NET Framework 4.6 before you install the FactoryTalk AssetCentre client
software.
During the installation, the FactoryTalk Services Platform will be installed and the
computer will be added to the FactoryTalk Network Directory. If for some reason
the client computer is not in the FactoryTalk Network Directory, use the
FactoryTalk Administration Console to add it. See Help for the FactoryTalk
Administration Console for instructions on adding a computer.
Tip: If you have a significant number of computers for which you need to permit or
restrict access, consider grouping them in the FactoryTalk Administration Console
to make assigning security privileges easier. For example, you can group all of the
computers used in offices away from the plant floor and restrict access to features
that should be used only from computers stationed where the user can see the
automation system directly.
Step 3: Configure security for By default, all users and the Administrators group in FactoryTalk Directory can
FactoryTalk AssetCentre perform any task in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre software. To deny specific users
the right to perform tasks in FactoryTalk AssetCentre, you must edit the Feature
Security settings in the FactoryTalk Administration Console.
Important: Never explicitly deny rights to the All Users or Administrators group in
FactoryTalk. Rather, set up specific user groups of your own and deny
rights to those groups. Denying rights to All Users or Administrators could
lock everyone out of the system and would deny rights in all
FactoryTalk-enabled products using any FactoryTalk CPR 9 version.
Important: There is also a Server Settings object in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre folder.
Do NOT attempt to change any of the settings in this object. Doing so may
render your FactoryTalk AssetCentre system inoperative. If you need to
change server settings (to use a different mail server, for example), from
Windows Start menu, select All Programs > Rockwell Software >
FactoryTalk AssetCentre Server > Server Settings.
5. In the Feature Security Properties window, click the policy you want to
change, and then click the browse button for the policy.
6. In the Configure Securable Action dialog box, select the user or group for
whom you want to assign permissions. If the user or group does not appear
in the list, click Add, click Show all, select the user or group, and then click
OK.
7. Click the appropriate box to allow or deny the user permission to the
selected feature.
8. Click OK.
Policy settings and their meanings The following table shows the policy settings and their meanings.
Configure Asset Inventory Settings Configure the settings in the Asset Inventory window.
Configure Archive Options Settings Turn on or off the function that allows Logix Designer to perform archive activities, such as file check-in, without direct interaction
with the FactoryTalk AssetCentre client.
Override Archive Undo Check Out Undo a check out even if a different user checked the file out.
Override Removal of Local Copies Choose to keep local copies of checked-in files on their computer. If this right is allowed, the user can keep local copies. If this right
is denied, the user is not given this option.
Configure Personal Archive File Associations Configure which software product launches when opening a particular type of file. If a personal file association is set, it will take
precedence over the system file association.
Configure System Archive File Associations Configure which software product launches when opening a particular type of file. This setting applies unless the user has specified
a personal file association.
Configure Personal Archive Working Folders Set a personal working folder for checking out files. For more information on working folders and personal working folders see the
FactoryTalk AssetCentre Client Help.
Configure System Archive Working Folders Set the system working folder to which all users check out files unless they have a personal working folder. For more information on
working folders and system working folders, see the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Client Help.
Run Archive Database Cleanup Wizard Run the Archive Database Cleanup Wizard to delete unused versions of files.
Allow Empty Comment at Check In Leave the comment field empty as they check in an asset.
Configure Assets Lifecycle Sync Synchronize life cycle information in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server and client with the Rockwell Automation life cycle website .
Display Calibration Management Data View Calibration Management data in FactoryTalk AssetCentre.
Perform Calibration Management Access Calibration Management functionality in ProCalV5 software.
Administer Calibration Users Administer users, groups, and permissions in ProCalV5 software. Note that this policy only determines if the user is automatically
added to the Administrator group in the ProCalV5 software. Once the user is added to ProCalV5, changing this policy for an
AssetCentre user does not change the user's ProCalV5 security permissions.
Switch to Design mode Enter Design mode, in which the user can edit the asset tree.
View Event Log Show the Event Log and run a search on the Event Log.
View Audit Log Show the Audit Log and run a search on the Audit Log.
View Diagnostics and Health Log Show the Diagnostics and Health Log and run a search on the Diagnostics and Health Log.
Change Diagnostics and Health Log Message Change the status of or add a comment to a Diagnostics and Health Log record.
View Diagnostics and Health Log Status View a status history for a Diagnostics and Health Log record.
Run Log Database Cleanup Wizard Run the Log Database Cleanup Wizard to remove old records from the logs. Data can be exported and saved in a separate file.
Enable or Disable DTMs Enable and disable DTMs in the DTM Catalog.
Edit DTM Network Show the DTM Networks dialog box to edit the DTM network.
Run PDC Field Edition Use the Process Device Configuration Field Edition software.
Create a new schedule Create a schedule.
Edit a schedule Change existing schedules.
Delete a schedule Delete schedules.
View a schedule Show the Schedules tab.
Command a schedule Issue commands to a schedule, such as making the schedule active or running the schedule immediately.
Create a search Set up a new search to find entries matching specified criteria in one of the logs, in the Archive History, or in Archive Check Out
Status information.
Step 4: Add contacts to the Use the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Address Book tab to create contact information
Address Book that the system uses to notify users about the progress and outcome of
FactoryTalk AssetCentre schedules and other system-related events. You can then
add contacts to groups (for example, allelectricians@myplant.com) if your existing
mail system supports groups. This allows you to inform recipients about system
events simultaneously.
Tip: You cannot import groups from another e-mail program. More than one user can
create groups at the same time.
To create contacts and groups, you must be granted View Address Book and
Edit Address Book permissions. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk
AssetCentre on page 26.
3. Select Tasks > Add New Address Book Contact or click the New button
(Keyboard users: Press Ctrl-N).
4. In the New Contact name dialog box, complete the Contact tab. You must
enter a unique name for the contact that is not the same as any other
contact or group name.
5. Click the Internet tab and complete it. You must enter an e-mail address
for the contact to receive notifications.
Tip: If in your existing e-mail system you have a group that already has an e-mail
address (for example, a group of electricians with the e-mail address
AllElectricians@MyCompany.com), you can use that group’s existing e-mail
address. Simply create a contact and give it a name (for example, Electricians) and
enter the group’s e-mail address (AllElectricians@MyCompany.com) as the
contact’s default e-mail address. The individual e-mail addresses of the electricians
in the group will not be added to the Address Book as contacts.
6. Click OK.
Once you have created Address Book contacts, you can add those contacts
to Address Book groups. Groups cannot be imported from another e-mail
program.
Tip: To add members to an existing rather than new group, see Help. Select Help >
Contents. Open the Address Book and click the Modify contacts and groups
topic.
8. On the Group tab in the Group Name field, enter a name for the group.
10. In the Contacts/Groups list on the left of the New Group dialog box,
select the contact or group to add to the group, and click Select.
Tip: To perform additional Address Book tasks (for example, to delete or modify groups
or contacts), see Help. Select Help > Contents, and open the Addresses Book
chapter.
Step 5: Set up FactoryTalk Use the Options: Database Limitations dialog box to specify the settings of
AssetCentre database database limitations, including:
limitations
• Total maximum size of the AssetCentre database
• Size warning levels
• Maximum number of versions per archive asset
• Maximum size of database table capturing logs
• Database capacity status refresh rate
• Email notification
Tip: Database limitation configuration is recommended but optional. You can use
FactoryTalk AssetCentre without setting up database limitations.
3. Under Category on the left side of the dialog box, select Database
Limitations.
4. Select the Database Limitations Enabled check box, and specify the
settings as desired.
Tip: By default, the Database Limitations Enabled check box is not selected, and all
the settings of database limitations are unavailable. To select the Database
Limitations Enabled check box to configure all the settings, you must have
Configure Database Limitations permission. See Step 3: Set Feature Security
for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
The following table shows how to configure each setting for Database Limitations.
Maximum size of database table Enter a value for the maximum file size of Event Log, Audit Log, and Diagnostics Log.
capturing logs If the file size of any log exceeds its maximum size, FactoryTalk AssetCentre writes the log, and adds a
new warning log about the current event log size exceeding its maximum size.
When the Event, Audit, or Diagnostic and Health logs reach the maximum size, a warning message
appears when you run the FactoryTalk AssetCentre client, indicating the log size status.
Database capacity status refresh rate Enter a value to specify the frequency to refresh the database capacity status. The default value is 2. The
minimum accepted value is 1, and 0 is not accepted.
When the database capacity reaches the warning or critical level, or the Event, Audit, or Diagnostic and
Health logs reach the maximum size, a warning message appears when the FactoryTalk AssetCentre
client refreshes the database capacity status.
Email notification Specify the email addresses to receive notifications when database size, asset version max, or log size
reaches alarm level.
Click the browse button to select email address from Contacts and Groups address book dialog.
If you set any value as 0 or higher than the maximum size, or leave any value blank, it is translated as
unlimited.
SCAN to Proceed Validate whether the current total database size, event log size, audit log size, diagnostics log size, and
asset versions meet each own specified threshold.
This operation is required when making any changes to the Database Limitations.
Not all situations during database limitation configuration are covered in this
manual. For detailed information, refer to the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Help.
Step 6: Configure the SSL Using the SSL protocol is required for FactoryTalk AssetCentre Web Client and
recommended for the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server, clients, and agents.
protocol
Important: Using the SSL protocol is an essential part of ensuring communications
security. Without it, no communication, including logging on to the
system, is encrypted.
6. Click OK.
Export the created SSL certificate for After creating an SSL certificate on the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server computer,
FactoryTalk AssetCentre client and export the certificate which will need to be imported on the FactoryTalk
agent computers AssetCentre client and agent computers.
• Under Export to, click , and then specify the location and name
to save the certificate.
• Specify the password for the certificate.
7. Click OK.
5. In the Add Site Binding dialog box, configure the following settings.
6. Click OK.
7. In the Site Bindings dialog box, the created site binding is listed. Click
Close.
Tip: You can remove the default HTTP site binding and only keep the created HTTPS site
binding.
2. Navigate to localhost > Sites > Default Web Site > RockwellSoftware >
AssetCentreWebClient.
• Require SSL
Selecting this option will result in deactivating the HTTP protocol
(with the default port 80). When you type http:// in the web browser, it
will be automatically redirected to https://.
• Ignore
This option applies to the client certificates.
b. In the search box, type Server Settings, and then press Enter.
2. Enter the user name and password to log on to FactoryTalk, and then click
OK.
Note: Make sure that the FQDN is complete. Otherwise you may
encounter some issues.
5. Click OK.
Import the SSL certificate to client On the client and agent computers, add the SSL certificate to the Trusted Root
and agent computers Certification Authorities certificate store.
The steps to import the SSL certificate on all the supported operating systems are
the same except for Windows 7 operating systems.
5. Follow the on-screen instructions until you get to the Certificate Store
screen.
8. Click Next.
6. On the File to Import page, browse for the SSL certificate file, and then
click Next.
9. Click Finish.
After the import operation, you may want to verify whether the SSL certificate is
successfully imported.
3. In the Add or Remove Snap-ins dialog box, select Certificates, and then
click Add.
4. In the Certificates snap-in dialog box, select Computer account, and then
click Next.
5. Click Finish.
8. If the SSL certificate is not listed, make sure to select Certificates under
Trusted Root Certification Authorities > Certificates, and then click
Action > All Tasks > Import.
Configure a firewall rule and web If the default port 443 is modified during the site binding configuration, you need
services URL if the default port is to:
modified
• Configure a Windows firewall rule for the self-defined port.
• Configure the primary server web services base URL.
4. In the New Inbound Rule Wizard, select Port, and then click Next.
5. In the Specific local ports box, enter the self-defined port as set during the
site binding configuration, for example 9000, and then click Next.
6. Follow the on-screen instructions until you get to the Name page.
7. In the Name box, enter the name for the new inbound rule, and then click
Finish.
2. In the Explorer, navigate to Network > System > Policies > Product
Policies > FactoryTalk AssetCentre, and then double-click Server
Settings.
3. In the Server Settings Properties dialog box, click the Primary Server
Web Services Base URL box, and then change the computer name part in
the form as MYSERVER:PortNumber.
4. Click OK.
Step 7: Configure Windows Windows Authentication is a secure way of authentication that uses the username
and the password of the user logged on to the operating system. In the
Authentication
communication secured with Windows Authentication mode, the username and
the password are sent between the client and the server in a strongly hashed form.
After you turn on Windows Authentication mode, the access to the page:
http(s)://accetcentre_server_full_name/rockwellsoftware/assetcentre
In order to access the page, the users will need to log on using their Windows
username and password.
6. Make sure that you have the following providers selected in the order
presented in the figure below.
If these providers are not listed, select each of them in the list under
Available Providers, and then click Add.
7. Make sure that all other authentication modes listed in the pane under
Authentication are disabled.
Everything that you do in FactoryTalk AssetCentre begins with an asset. The asset
tree in the Asset View represents your plant including all the assets (anything from
a device to a program to a procedure document) that you want to control, back up,
or monitor. The asset tree provides you a method of organizing your plant assets in
a logical fashion that makes sense to you (for example, by physical location, flow of
materials, or machine type).
Quick Start steps for To design the asset tree, you must perform the following steps:
designing the asset tree • Step 1: Plan the organization of your asset tree on page 59
• Step 2: Add assets to the asset tree on page 61
• Step 3: Change security settings for an asset on page 66
Step 1: Plan the organization of It is important to plan the organization of your asset tree in advance. The
your asset tree organization of the tree can impact your efficiency in applying security settings to
assets and setting up Disaster Recovery schedules.
Tip: For background information to better understand the types of assets available in
FactoryTalk AssetCentre and the use of the asset tree, see About the Asset Catalog
and About the Asset View chapters in the online help.
You must be in Design mode to edit the tree. Only one user in the system at a time
can be in Design mode.
Security considerations
When initially added, an asset inherits the security settings of the container in
which it is placed (and a container inherits the security settings of the container in
which it is placed). First, set security on the root. Then add containers under the
root and set security for those containers. Then add the next level of assets and
containers, and so on.
Schedule considerations
Schedules are set up by selecting the asset to be scheduled from the Asset View.
You can only select one asset when creating a schedule. If you want the schedule to
operate on multiple assets, place all those assets in a container in the asset tree.
This container will be the starting point of the schedule. For example, if you want
to backup the configuration files for a group of devices, place all those devices in a
container in the Asset View.
Organization
When you initially set up the asset tree, you will have to decide what will be the
most useful organization for you. The examples below show three possible
organizations:
• Physical location
In this arrangement, assets are organized by their physical location in your
plant.
• Flow of materials
In this arrangement assets are organized by the flow of materials in the
production process. This may be particularly useful for continuous and
batch processes.
Tip: Items in the tree are automatically organized alphabetically. If you want to force a
certain order, use numbers in your asset names.
• Machine type
In this arrangement, assets are organized by the type of machine. You might
further organize machines of the same type by location.
Step 2: Add assets to the asset Assets are the heart of FactoryTalk AssetCentre. Anything you want the
tree FactoryTalk AssetCentre system to manage must be included in the asset tree. On
first use, all assets to be managed must be added to the asset tree.
There are rules that govern the location of the different types of assets that you can
add to the asset tree:
Tip: When initially added, an asset inherits the security settings of the container in
which it is placed (and a container inherits the security settings of the container in
which it is placed). Take advantage of this inheritance by setting security for a
container before placing assets inside that container. See Step 3: Change security
settings for an asset on page 66.
• Switch to Design Mode permission. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for
FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
• Create Children, Read, and Write permissions for the container into
which you want to add an asset. See Step 3: Change security settings for an
asset on page 66.
You can add devices to the asset tree whether your FactoryTalk AssetCentre client
computer is connected to the devices via a network or not. When connected to the
devices, however, you can automatically acquire device information by browsing
for the device. This is the preferred method in this manual. The client computer
must be connected to the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Server to add devices to the
asset tree.
To enter device information manually when you are disconnected from the device
network, see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Assets chapter and click the
Associate a device in the Asset View with a networked device topic.
To add assets
1. To enter Design mode, on the Asset View toolbar, click the Design button
(Keyboard users: Press F3 to toggle Design mode on and off). If you cannot
enter Design mode, see If you can’t enter Design Mode on page 103.
2. Click an asset in the Asset Catalog and drag it to the desired location in the
asset tree.
Tip: Select the container into which you want to place the new asset and press Ctrl-N.
3. Enter the properties for the asset. For additional information about
completing the fields for a particular asset type, click Help.
4. When the (Device Type) Properties dialog box is complete, click OK.
Tip: To learn about additional asset tasks (for example copying, deleting, moving, or
renaming assets), refer to Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Assets chapter
and click the desired topic.
Use Asset Inventory to add assets to FactoryTalk AssetCentre supports a new asset type, Asset Inventory. The Asset
the asset tree Inventory asset can be used to scan physical automation devices on the network.
When you run a backup or backup and compare schedule on an Asset Inventory
asset, the Asset Inventory agent service scans the connected devices and computers
on the network and stores unique identification information about hardware,
firmware, and software in the backup data. Once you have the Asset Inventory
scanning result, you can add new assets from the scanning result to the asset tree.
This is very helpful especially the first time you build the asset tree. For
information about schedules, see Step 4: Run schedules on page 75.
You need to open the Asset Inventory window first before adding assets to the
asset tree. After running backup or backup and compare schedule on Asset
Inventory, you can open the Asset Inventory window.
Important: You must enter design mode to add new assets to the asset tree.
2. In the asset tree, right-click the Asset Inventory backup file and select
Open, or select the file in the asset tree and then at the top of the Archive
tab, click the file link. The File Retrieval Options dialog box opens.
3. On the File Retrieval Options dialog box, keep the Show in Asset
Inventory Grid View check box selected.
• If you want to open the Asset Inventory window in editable mode, click
the Check Out button. In editable mode, you can edit the additional
information and commission date for device assets. A copy of the file is
retrieved to the current working folder on your computer so that you
can edit it.
Tip: Clear the Show in Asset Inventory Grid View check box to get or check out a file
as a normal backup file, without opening it in the Asset Inventory window.
Once the Asset Inventory window opens, you can add new assets to the asset tree.
1. On the Devices tab in the Asset Inventory window, select the Add option.
Tip: Clicking the SYNC button doesn't add any new assets to the asset tree. It identifies
assets in the scanning result that are new compared to assets on the asset tree.
Make sure you are in design mode to proceed.
After clicking the SYNC button, assets on the Devices tab that:
• exist in the asset tree with the same properties appear dimmed. The
check boxes before them are automatically selected.
• exist in the asset tree with different properties appear dimmed. The
check boxes before them are automatically selected. You can update
these assets with different properties using the Update option.
• don't exist in the asset tree can be added to the asset tree. The check
boxes before the new assets are available.
3. Select the check boxes before the assets you want to add to the asset tree.
Click the button on the toolbar. The Asset Inventory Add
Asset Wizard dialog box opens.
4. On the Asset Inventory Add Asset Wizard - Step 1 of 4 dialog box, enter
the required information before proceeding.
Click in the Asset Type field and click the browse button . On the
Select Asset Type dialog box, select the asset type. Click Select.
Tip: Device assets that can be mapped to the corresponding asset type have the Asset
Type field automatically filled. Otherwise, the Asset Type field is empty.
Tip: You can leave the Asset Name field blank. FactoryTalk AssetCentre automatically
creates the asset name according to the asset type appended with a number (like
_2).
Click in the Asset Location field and click the browse button . On
the Select Asset Location dialog box, select the node on the asset tree
or click the Add New Container button to create a new generic
container. Click Select.
Tip: The level an asset is added to the asset tree depends on which node you select in
the asset tree structure. By default, the asset is added in the root. If you select a
container, the asset is added to the container. If you select a non-container asset,
the asset is added to the structure at the same level as other assets.
After Asset Type and Asset Location are specified, click Next.
Tip: You cannot proceed to the next step without specifying Asset Type and Asset
Location.
5. On the Asset Inventory Add Asset Wizard - Step 2 of 4 dialog box, review
the details of the new assets that will be updated to the asset tree. Click
Start.
Tip: To return to Asset Inventory Add Asset Wizard - Step 1 of 4 to modify the
asset type, name, or location, click Back.
7. When the adding process is complete, you can see result of the adding
operation on the Asset Inventory Add Asset Wizard - Step 4 of 4 dialog
box. Click Finish.
To export the result, click Export to save the result as a .csv or .txt file.
Assets added to the asset tree appear dimmed on the Devices tab with check
boxes selected before them.
Step 3: Change security settings Each asset in the asset tree has security settings controlling which users can
perform what actions with that asset.
for an asset
When initially added, an asset inherits the security settings of the container in
which it is placed (and a container inherits the security settings of the container in
which it is placed). That is, children inherit security permissions from their
parents. You can assign explicit permissions to an asset, overriding the inherited
permissions. You can also break the chain of inheritance for an asset so that it will
not inherit permissions. For more information on inheritance see the FactoryTalk
Security Help which is accessible from the Security Settings dialog box
(referenced in the steps below).
If you move an asset, it retains its security settings. If you copy an asset, the copy
does not retain the security settings of the original. Rather, the copy inherits the
settings from its new parent container.
Tip: To change security settings for an asset, you must have Switch to Design mode
permission. See Step 3: Set feature security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
Keyboard users: Press F3 to toggle Design mode on and off.
1. While in Design mode, right-click the asset in the asset tree and select
Security.
2. On the Permissions tab of the Security Settings dialog box, select whether
you want to set permissions by User or by Action.
3. In the top pane, select either the user or the action for which you want to set
security for the selected asset.
4. In the bottom pane select either the action (see the table below) or the user
for which you want to set security and select or clear the Allow and Deny
boxes accordingly. For more detailed information on using the dialog box
and FactoryTalk Security, click Help.
Get Get a copy of the file or files associated with the selected asset from Archive.
Label Apply a descriptive Label to a version of a file associated with the selected asset
in Archive.
Pin Pin a version of a file associated with the selected asset.
Promote Store an old version of the file as the most recent version.
Set Store Latest Version Specify that only the most recent version of the file associated with the selected
file asset should be retained.
Set Working Folder Set the working folder for files associated with the selected asset.
Undo CheckOut Undo a check-out operation for files associated with the selected asset. See Help.
Select Help > Contents. Open the Archive chapter and click the Undo a
check-out topic.
Common
Configure Security Change security settings for the selected asset.
Create Children Add assets underneath the selected asset (only if the selected asset is a container
or device-type asset).
Delete Delete the selected asset from the asset tree.
Execute This setting is not applicable in this release of the FactoryTalk AssetCentre
software.
List Children Show children of the selected asset. If a user does not have this right, they will
not be able to expand the selected asset to see assets that it contains. If you set
this right to Allow, also set the Read right for this asset to Allow.
Read Show the selected asset in the asset tree.
Show the selected asset's properties.
Write Change the selected asset's properties.
Tip: For more information on any of the Archive tasks listed in the first section of this
table, see Quick Start 5: Open and edit files in Archive on page 87.
To learn about additional asset tasks (for example copying, deleting, moving, or
renaming assets), refer to Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Assets chapter
and click the desired topic.
Scheduled events for Rockwell Automation Logix 5000 processors will fail if
FactoryTalk Security is enabled for that devices' programming software (RSLogix
5000 versions 16 and earlier). The problem is fixed in RSLogix 5000 versions
higher than 16. For RSLogix 5000 versions 16 and earlier, running scheduled
events requires single sign-on for these versions. This issue does not affect other
device's schedules (such as robots or PanelView devices). If a schedule contains
both Logix 5000 processors and other devices, the scheduled event will only fail for
those Logix 5000 processors for which FactoryTalk Security is enabled in the
programming software; the event will complete for the other devices.
To configure the system so that scheduled operations will succeed even with
security enabled in the RSLogix software, see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open
the Welcome to FactoryTalk AssetCentre chapter and click the About the
configuration for security-enabled RSLogix products topic.
Also, activation is required for Disaster Recovery. For information regarding the
activation required, see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Welcome to
FactoryTalk AssetCentre chapter and click the Activation in FactoryTalk
AssetCentre topic.
Quick Start steps for setting To set up schedules, you must perform the following steps:
up schedules
• Step 1: Set up Agent Groups and agent computers in them on page 70
• Step 2: Create a schedule for the desired Disaster Recovery operation on
page 72
• Step 3: Set up recipient lists for schedule results on page 73
• Step 4: Run schedules on page 75
Step 1: Set up Agent Groups and FactoryTalk AssetCentre uses agents to perform Disaster Recovery operations.
agent computers in them Agents are programs that communicate with the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server
and perform tasks on behalf of the server. Agents allow work to be distributed and
shared among multiple computers to spread processing load and speed up
operations. When a server needs an agent to perform a task, it locates the
computer running the operation and assigns the task to that agent. The agent then
reports the task's completion to the server.
FactoryTalk AssetCentre Agent Groups is a plug-in that helps you manage the
agents into groups. With this plug-in, the agent computers that are connected to
the same FactoryTalk AssetCentre server do not need to have the same
configuration. This plug-in allows you to:
• Create agent groups, assign agent computers to the agent groups, and
identify an agent group for an asset
• Assign backup and compare schedule tasks on an asset to the agent
computers that belong to the asset’s agent group
• Monitor the status of agent computers in the Agent Status pane, the Agent
Group Creation and Agent Assignment pane, and the Assets per Agent
Group pane.
This manual covers operations configuring Agent Groups and agent computers
within those groups. To add a physical agent computer into FactoryTalk
To learn about more Agent Groups configurations (for example, delete and
rename an agent group, edit agent group properties, delete an agent computer, edit
agent computer properties, move an agent computer, and move an asset from one
agent group in to another) not covered in this manual, refer to Help. Select Help >
Contents. Open the Agent Groups chapter and click the desired topic.
Create an agent group Agent Groups plug-in manages the usage of agents. By default, there is one System
Default agent group, which cannot be renamed or deleted. The System Default
agent group is used for scheduled searches, and by default for any Disaster
Recovery tasks. If you need to create a new agent group, follow the steps below.
2. On the Menu bar, click View > Agent Groups (or click the Agent Groups
button).
3. Click the Add Agent Group button on the Agent group Creation
and Agent Assignment toolbar. The Add an Agent Group dialog box
opens.
Tip: You can also right-click anywhere in Agent Group Creation and Agent
Assignment pane and select Add Agent Group.
4. On the Add an Agent Group dialog box, enter the name and the
description for the agent group. Click OK.
Tip: The maximum number of agent groups which you can create depends on your
licensed agent group capacity. By default, you can create one agent group in
addition to the existing System Default agent group.
Create an agent computer You can create an agent computer in Agent Groups to monitor the physical agent
computers.
2. On the Menu bar, click View > Agent Groups (or click the Agent Groups
button).
3. Select an agent group, or an agent computer under the group where you
want to add the agent computer to. Otherwise, the agent computer will be
created under System Default agent group.
Tip: You can also right-click the agent group and select Add Agent Computer.
5. On the Add an Agent Computer dialog box, enter the name, location and
the description for the agent computer.
You can click the Connect button to check whether the FactoryTalk
AssetCentre Server service can connect to the agent computer.
6. Click OK.
Step 2: Create a schedule for the You can set up either a Backup or Backup and Compare Disaster Recovery
operation when you create a schedule.
desired Disaster Recovery
operation Tip: To create schedules, you must have Create a new schedule, Edit a schedule,
and Command a schedule permissions. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for
FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
To create a schedule
1. In the asset tree, select the container or device for which you want to
schedule an operation.
Tip: Multiple assets can be included in the same scheduled operation by creating a
scheduled operation for a container. For example, a single container may contain
multiple controllers. Scheduling a Backup operation for the container backs up all
of the devices in that container in one operation.
For all of a device's schedule properties to be available for modification, make sure
each device to be added to a schedule has its Configuration Data defined in the
device's properties. The Configuration Data will be used to specify the master file
for a Disaster Recovery schedule. See Step 2: Add assets to the asset tree on page
59.
If you have more than one e-mail address you want to include, separate the
addresses in the Completion Email List field with semicolons (;), or, if you
have View Address Book permission, select the contacts or groups from the
FactoryTalk Address Book. The report sent from this field is the End of
Schedule Report. For more information about the End of Schedule report,
see Step 2: Set up recipient lists for schedule results on page 73. For more
information on a particular field, click Help.
To create a start time that does not begin on the hour or half hour, type the
time (and AM or PM) in the field. Be aware that it is possible to create a
schedule that will not run on a specific date. For example, if you choose to
have a schedule run on the 31st day of every month, it will not execute in
months that do not have 31 days. For more information on a particular
field, click Help.
Properties for the selected device appear on the right side of the dialog box.
For help completing the shown properties for the selected device, click
Help.
The schedule you created will be active unless you clear the Activate the
Schedule box. For more information on a particular field, click Help.
7. Click Finished.
Step 3: Set up recipient lists for There are two different types of schedule reports you can send to specified
recipients when a schedule completes:
schedule results
• End of Schedule report. This general report summarizes information such
as a Backup and Compare schedule's start and stop times and whether there
were any differences between the contents of the physical device and the
asset's master file stored in Archive. This report is set up through the
Schedules tab.
• Backup report or Backup and Compare report. These more detailed,
operation-specific reports include information such as asset and hardware
details, the agent computer that ran the schedule, and the name and
location of the master file used in a Compare. For Backup and Compare
operations, the Backup and Compare report indicates whether or not
differences were found. To include the detail of what these differences were,
attach the Compare Report file to the e-mail notifications. Both the Backup
report and Backup and Compare report are set up through an asset's
scheduled operation properties.
Tip: To send schedule results, you must have Command a schedule and Edit a
schedule permissions. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre
on page 26.
Send an End of Schedule report To send an End of Schedule report at the end of a schedule
3. To avoid scrolling the entire list, begin typing the last name of the contact
or the name of the group. You can double-click the contact or group to add
it to the list of recipients at the bottom of the dialog box. For information
on adding a new contact, see Step 4: Add contacts to the Address Book on
page 28.
4. Click OK.
Send an operation-specific report To send a Backup report or Backup and Compare report at the end of a
schedule
1. On the Schedules tab, select the schedule containing the asset for which
you want to send a report.
2. To select the asset associated with the schedule and complete its e-mail (and
other) operation properties, see Help. Select Help > Content. Open the
Schedules chapter and click the Modify scheduled operation properties
topic.
Tip: After a Backup and Compare operation completes, if no differences are found, the
Compare Report file is attached to e-mail notifications if, in the device properties
under Attach Report to email, you set the Event Completed field to True. If
differences are found, the Compare Report file is attached to e-mail notifications if
you set the Event Compare Differences Detected field to True. See Help. Select
Help > Content. Open the Schedules chapter and click the Modify scheduled
operation properties topic.
Step 4: Run schedules You can activate a schedule so that it runs at its next scheduled time. You did this
automatically if you selected the Activate the Schedule box in the wizard when
you created the schedule. You can also activate schedules from the Schedules tab.
To run a schedule immediately, you can run schedules manually. Choosing to run
a schedule manually immediately runs the schedule and sends e-mail notifications
to your recipient list instead of waiting for the operation's next run time. Running
a schedule manually does not affect that schedule's next run time.
Tip: To run schedules, you must have Command a schedule permission. To activate
schedules, you must have Edit a schedule permission. See Step 3: Set Feature
Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
Run schedules by making them To activate an existing schedule that you did not activate when you created
active the schedule
• On the Schedules tab next to the schedule you want to activate, select the
Active check box. If the selected schedule is to run daily at 4:00 P.M., the
schedule will run next at 4:00 P.M. today (or 4:00 P.M. tomorrow if it is
already later than 4:00 P.M. today).
To run a schedule immediately without waiting for its next scheduled run
time
1. You cannot manually run a schedule that has Running status, so on the
Schedules tab, select a schedule with Waiting to Run status.
Tip: When you move, copy, or delete assets in the asset tree, the schedules for those
assets are also moved, copied, or deleted. To learn about the impacts moving,
copying, and deleting assets have on schedules, refer to Help. Select Help >
Contents. Open the Schedules chapter and click the Schedule changes when
assets are moved, copied, deleted or renamed topic.
To learn about additional schedule tasks (for example, stopping schedules,
changing schedule run times, setting asset defaults for schedules, or renaming,
filtering, and deleting schedules) not covered in this manual, refer to Help. Select
Help > Contents. Open the Schedules chapter and click the desired topic.
• Event Log. This log shows database information regarding events that
occur in the system. Events are generally system-initiated, for example an
upload occurred, or a scheduled task completed. Event records are generated
by FactoryTalk-enabled products.
• Audit Log. This log shows database information regarding actions users
perform in the system, such as making edits to an RSLogix 5000 project or
opening or closing such a software product. Audit records are generated by
FactoryTalk-enabled products.
• Diagnostics & Health Log. The Diagnostics and Health Log provides
information about the condition of automation devices. For example, a
monitoring software product, such as RSNetWorx MD, detects a problem
with a device on the automation network. It reports the problem and logs
the information in the Diagnostics and Health Log.
Tip: Initially, only previously existing data appears in the Diagnostics and Health Log if
that data was imported from the RSMACC Network Health Solution. This data is not
updated by FactoryTalk AssetCentre. New data is logged in the Diagnostics and
Health Log only if RSNetWorx MD is installed on your system.
You can search for and show specified records from one log at a time. For example,
you could search for log entries where a specific user performed a task on a specific
computer.
made a change in a control system that was working fine a few hours ago,
but now is down and preventing production.
Tip: In addition to searching logs, you can search the Archive History Log, the Archive
Check Out Status, and the Asset Extended Property.
To perform a quick search without complex conditions instead of the full searches
described in this manual, see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Logs
chapter and click the Perform a Quick Search on a log topic.
Quick Start steps for To set up searches, you can view logs and then perform the steps to set up and run
searches:
viewing and searching logs
• Step 1: View logs on page 78
• Step 2: Create a search on page 80
• Step 3: Set search security on page 84
• Step 4: Run searches on page 85
• Step 5: View and print search results on page 86
Step 1: View logs Viewing a particular log shows the latest entries for that log only. If no data
appears in the log, see If no data appears in a log on page 108.
Tip: To view the desired log, you must be granted View Audit Log, View Event Log,
or VIew Diagnostics and Health Log permission. If you do not have rights to
view the desired log, the message You do not have permission to view the selected
log will appear. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on
page 26.
1. When you click a log button, the newest log entries for the selected log
appear.
2. Use the filter fields to limit the items shown in the log. To filter fields, see
Help.
Click Help > Contents. Open the Logs chapter and click the Filter log
records topic.
Click Help > Contents. Open the Logs chapter and click Perform a quick
search on a log topic.
4. Use the column headings to sort and arrange the log data. See Help.
Click Help > Contents. Open the Logs chapter and click the Sort and
arrange log records topic.
5. When you click a log entry, its contents is shown here in the Details pane.
To view logs
• Select View > Audit Log (or click the Audit Log button).
• Select View > Event Log (or click the Event Log button).
• Select View > Diagnostics & Health Log (or click the Diagnostics &
Health Log button).
To learn about the data fields shown in each log, click Help while the
desired log is shown.
3. To show the contents of a log entry in the Log Item Details pane, click the
log entry.
4. To update the shown log with any additional records, click the Refresh
button . This updates the records in the log with events that occurred
in your system since the log display was last refreshed. The log display is
automatically refreshed at the rate determined in the client software
settings. To change the number of seconds between automatic refreshes, see
Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Logs chapter and click the
Change the refresh rate and number of shown records topic.
Tip: To learn about additional log tasks (for example, sorting, filtering, printing,
showing attachments, or changing the status of a Diagnostics & Health Log record)
see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Logs chapter and click the desired
topic.
Step 2: Create a search Use FactoryTalk AssetCentre Searches to show specified records of the Event Log,
Audit Log, Diagnostics and Health Log, the Archive History Log, the Archive
Check Out Status, or the Asset Extended Property. Search results can be based on
any column of data in a record and are generated based on complex conditions
that you set.
Tip: To create unscheduled searches, you must have Create a Search permission. To
create scheduled searches, you must also be granted Create a Schedule, Edit a
Schedule, View a Schedule, and Command a schedule permissions. See Step
3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
To create a search
3. Complete the Search Properties page of the New Search Wizard dialog
box. Be sure to enter a unique name for the search and select its data source
(the record you want to search). For information to complete any of the
fields, click Help.
4. To create an unscheduled search for the selected record, click Finished and
go to Step 6.
To create a start time that does not begin on the hour or half hour, type the
time (and AM or PM) in the field. Be aware that it is possible to create a
search that will not run on a specific date. For example, if you choose to
have a search run on the 31st day of every month, it will not execute in
months that do not have 31 days. For more information on a particular
field, click Help. When the dialog box is complete, click Finished.
6. To configure how the search results will appear, complete the Source and
Display tab. If you do not complete this tab, the default format will be used
for the search results. The following table lists this tab’s buttons and
options:
Sort (row heading) Select the shown data fields (above) to sort the search results. In the Sort row
beneath the column heading, click the cell to select the desired sort order
(Ascending, Descending, or No Sorting). Columns are sorted in the order in which
they are shown. To change column order, use the Move Column buttons
described above.
Width(%) Specify the column width of data fields in percentage in the search results. In the
Width(%) row, click the cell to enter an integer as the percentage of width for a
column. The total of each column's width percentage can be equal to or less than
100 percent, but cannot exceed 100 percent. When the total of width percentage
is less than 100 percent, all the columns except for the last one will keep their
width percentage. The last column will expand its width by the percentage that
is missing from 100 percent against the total of the rest column widths. For
example, there are a total of four columns, each of whose column width is 10
percent. In the search results, the first three columns take the space of 10 percent
of the entire row, while the last column will take the space of 70 percent of the
entire row, even though it's specified as 10 percent.
Display all rows In the search results, show all records of the source log that meet the search
criteria.
Display only the first In the search results, limit the matching records shown up to the number
(number) rows indicated.
Tabular style Tabular style arranges each record with column-style headings.
Card style Card style arranges each record with row-style headings.
Portrait The search report is shown in portrait orientation.
Landscape The search report is shown in landscape orientation.
7. To create or modify the search criteria for the selected search definition,
complete the Conditions tab. The conditions you create determine the
records that will appear in the search results. For example, you can create a
condition to include only those search results logged before or after a
specific date and time. If you do not complete this tab, there will be no
conditions placed on the records returned in the search results. That is, the
search will return all records.
Place a left parenthesis at the beginning of the selected condition. Use parenthesis to
group conditions to control the way the entire expression is evaluated.
Place a right parenthesis at the end of the selected condition. Use parenthesis to control
the way the entire expression is evaluated.
Place an And in front of the selected condition. By default, each condition has an And
in front of it. Use And when you want results to appear in the search results only if both
conditions are met.
Place an Or in front of the selected condition. Use Or when you want an item to appear
in the search results if either one or the other condition is met.
Place a Not in front of the selected condition. Use Not when you want to exclude log
records that meet the condition.
Move a condition higher in the list of shown conditions. While FactoryTalk AssetCentre
does evaluate conditions in a specific order (parenthetical conditions before And
conditions, and Or conditions last), it does also evaluate those conditions from top to
bottom.
Move a condition lower in the list of shown conditions. FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Move Down evaluates the conditions in the order they appear.
10. To format and modify the recipient list for scheduled search results as well
as set the time zone for the computer running the search, complete the
Scheduled Search Operation tab. For information on completing this tab,
click Help.
Tip: The Scheduled Search Operation tab only appears when you select a scheduled
search definition on the Searches tab. To add a schedule to an existing search
definition, see Help. Select Help > Content. Open the Searches chapter and click
the Create or modify a search schedule topic.
Step 3: Set search security You can set security for a search definition to determine which users can set
security for, save, execute, and delete the search.
Tip: To modify security settings for a search, you must be granted Configure Security
permission. In addition, you must be granted the Read and Write permissions.
See the steps below.
Do not deny yourself Read permission or you will no longer be able to show the
Security Settings for (Search name) dialog box to change security for the
selected search definition. Generally, all FactoryTalk AssetCentre users are initially
granted each permission related to search security. To prevent other users from
changing your search definition, deny them Configure Security permission.
2. On the Searches tab, select the search for which you want to change
security.
3. Select Edit > Security (or click the Security button at the bottom of the
Searches tab).
4. Complete the Security Settings for (Search name) dialog box. To do this,
select the user and then set that user's permissions for the selected search
definition, and then click OK. To add a user for whom to set security for
the selected search definition, at the top of the dialog box, click Add.
5. Click OK.
Step 4: Run searches To run schedules, you can either activate scheduled searches or manually run a
scheduled or unscheduled search. You may want to run a scheduled search
manually if you do not want to have to wait for the search's next run time.
Running a scheduled search manually does not affect that search's next scheduled
run time.
Time Zones
A scheduled search may actually run on a different computer than your client
computer. If some computers in your FactoryTalk AssetCentre system are in
different time zones, this could confuse the time-related information in your
search results. To set the time zone for a computer that is to run a selected
scheduled search, see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Searches chapter
and click the About modifying and saving searches topic. To set the default time
zone for a computer that is to run scheduled searches, click the Set scheduled
search options topic.
Tip: To run a search, you must be granted Execute permission. See Step 3: Set search
security on page 84. To activate and deactivate scheduled searches, you must be
granted Command a Schedule permission. To run a search immediately, you
must be granted the appropriate permission for the type of search you are going to
run — View Audit Log, View Event Log, or View Diagnostics & Health Log
permission. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page
26.
Make a search active To activate scheduled searches so that they run at their next scheduled run
time
2. Next to the searches you want to activate, select the Active check box. If the
selected search is scheduled to run daily at 4:00 P.M., the search will run
next at 4:00 P.M. today (or 4:00 P.M. tomorrow if it is already later than
4:00 P.M. today).
Tip: To perform a quick search without complex conditions instead of the full searches
described in this manual, see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Logs
chapter and click the Perform a Quick Search on a log topic.
Step 5: View and print search Once you run a search, the results appear on a separate tab. Use the Report
(Search Name) tab to view and navigate the results of a search you have run, as
results
well as export and print the search's results.
Tip: To preview a search instead of showing the report, click the Preview tab.
1. After you run the search, click the Report (Search Name) tab.
2. Use the Report tab's toolbar to navigate, export, and print the results. The
following table lists the Report tab's toolbar buttons and provides a brief
description of each button’s functions.
Button Description
Export the search results to the desired location on your hard drive. Results
Export Report are saved in PDF format.
Print Report Print the search results. Complete the Print dialog box and click Print.
Go To Next Page Show the next page of the search results. If the cover page of the report is
shown, click this button to see the first page of the report containing the
actual search results returned.
Go To Last Page Show the last page of the search results.
Go To Page Show a specific page of the search results by entering the page number.
Zoom Show the search results as larger or smaller using different percentages.
3. To close the Report tab, click the Close button on the right side of
the tab.
Tip: To learn about additional search tasks (for example, filtering, modifying,
renaming, sorting, or deleting searches), refer to Help. Select Help > Contents.
Open the Searches chapter and then click the desired topic.
The FactoryTalk AssetCentre Archive is a version control tool that helps manage
asset files. Use Archive to keep secure copies of asset configuration files, pin file
versions as masters, track versions, and control file use so that only one person at a
time can modify a file.
Tip: File size is not limited in Archive; file size is only limited by your Microsoft SQL
Server's capabilities.
Step 1: Set a working folder To edit a file or binder stored in the Archive database, you must place a copy of
the file or binder on your local hard drive. The location on your hard drive is
called a working folder. Without a working folder, you cannot retrieve files or
binders from the Archive database. When you set a working folder for an asset,
you set the working folder for all files and binders within the asset.
• System working folder. The location where images of files and binders will
be stored when you check out the files for editing or get a read-only version
of a file. When the system working folder is set, this working folder applies
to all files and binders in an asset, and all FactoryTalk AssetCentre users.
For example, if you set a system working folder located at C:\BOTTLING
PLANT for an asset called East Conveyor, when a user gets or checks out
the East Conveyor asset, the path C:\BOTTLING PLANT is created on
that user's local computer and will contain all of the East Conveyor asset's
files. Each asset can only have one system working folder. Any user with
Configure System Archive Working folders permission can set a system
working folder for an asset.
• Personal working folder. The working folder that overrides the system
working folder. When you set a personal working folder in Archive, that
folder is created on your computer and remains your personal working
folder for an asset's files and binders. Other users use the system working
folder until they set their own personal working folders. If users set personal
working folders for assets on one computer and then launch FactoryTalk
AssetCentre on another computer and want to use the same personal
working folders, they must set the working folders again.
Tip: When you check out, check in, or get a file or binders, you have the option of
overriding the current working folder with a temporary location. See Step 2: Check
out a file for editing on page 89, Step 3: Check in a file on page 91, or Step 4: Get a
read-only version of a file on page 92.
To set a system working folder, you must have Configure System Archive
Working Folders permission. To set a personal working folder (or to override a
working folder when checking in, checking out, or getting a file or binder), you
must have Configure Personal Archive Working Folders permission (see Step 3:
Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26) and Set Working
Folder permission for the asset (see Step 3: Change security settings for an asset on
page 66).
2. In the asset tree, select the asset containing the files and binders for which
you want to set the working folder.
3. On the Archive tab, after the Working folder field, click Set.
4. Complete the Set Working Folders dialog box. The current working folder
for the selected asset appears at the bottom of this dialog. If you set a
personal working folder for yourself, it will override the system working
folder. However, all other users will use the system working folder for the
asset’s files.
5. Click OK.
Step 2: Check out a file for Before modifying any file stored in Archive, you must retrieve a copy of the file to
editing the current working folder on your computer. Retrieving a file and making it
available for editing is called checking out a file. Only one user at a time can check
out a file. If a file is checked out by another user, you must wait until that user
checks in the file again before you can check out and edit the file. However, you
can get a file that is checked out by another user so that you can view it in your
project. For information about getting a read-only version of a file, see Step 4: Get
a read-only version of a file on page 92.
When you check out an asset, you automatically check out all of the files within
the asset. You have the option of checking out any files located in subfolders of the
asset.
FactoryTalk AssetCentre makes it easy to locate a file you check out by duplicating
the asset tree structure in folders and subfolders on your hard drive. A check out
duplicates the asset tree structure from the container or folder where you set the
working folder to the container or folder where the file you checked out is located.
Tip: To check out files, you must have CheckOut - CheckIn permission for the asset.
See Step 3: Change security settings for an asset on page 66.
1. In the asset tree, select the asset containing the file(s) to check out. Once
you select an asset in the asset tree, you can also select the file to check out
on the Archive tab.
Tip: You can also right-click an asset in the asset tree (or a file on the Archive tab after
you select an asset in the asset tree) and select Check Out.
3. Complete the Check out dialog box by selecting any of the following
options:
5. Click OK. A checkmark appears next to the file link and the check out
location of the file appears on the Archive tab.
Tip: You can undo a check-out. This reverts a file or an asset's files to the previous
version and marks the file as no longer checked out. For information about
undoing a check-out, refer to Help. See Help > Contents. Open the Archive
chapter and click the Undo a check out topic.
Step 3: Check in a file Once edits are completed to a checked-out file, return it to the Archive database.
Checking in a file saves a new version so that changes are backed up and protected
in the Archive database. When you are working on a file over a long period of
time, it is good practice to check in the file daily.
If you check in an asset, you automatically check in all files within the asset. You
have the option of checking in any files located in subfolders of the asset as well.
You can only check in a file that someone else has checked out if you have
permission.
Tip: To check in files, you must have CheckOut - CheckIn permission (see Step 3:
Change security settings for an asset on page 66). To check in a file someone else
has checked out, you must have Override Archive CheckIn permission (see Step
3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26).
1. In the asset tree, select the file or the asset containing the files to check in.
Tip: You can also right-click the asset or file in the asset tree (or a file on the Archive
tab if you select an asset in the asset tree) and select Check In.
3. Complete the Check in dialog box. The following options are available:
Keep checked out Check in the file so the changes are backed up in the Archive database, but immediately
check out the file to yourself again so that you can keep editing it.
Recursively check in files from Normally when you check in a device or container, you check in all of the files within
subfolders that asset. Select this option to also check in any files located in subfolders of the device
or container. This option is only available if you select a device or container in the asset
tree.
Override check-out location Select this option to check in files from a temporary working folder instead of your
with path current working folder. This is useful if you made a copy of a file and placed it in a
location other than the working folder to which you originally checked out the file. To
save any changes to the file you copied, click Browse and select the location from
which you want to check in the file.
To override the working folder, you must have Configure Personal Archive Working
Folders permission (see Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on
page 26) and Set Working Folders permission (see Step 3: Change security settings
for an asset on page 66).
Note: Depending on the value assigned to the Allow Empty Comment at Check In security
setting for a particular user or group, typing a comment may or may not be obligatory
upon the check-in.
5. Click OK. The checkmark is removed from the asset or file on the Archive
tab. The check-in action, as well as the date and time the file is checked in,
appears on the History tab. To learn about the History tab, see Help. Select
Help > Contents. Open the Archive chapter and click the View file history
topic.
Step 4: Get a read-only version Use Get to retrieve a read-only copy of a file or the files in an asset to your current
working folder. Get allows people who need to use the file (but don't need to edit
of a file
it) to get the necessary file version. For example, if you want to copy rungs from
another ladder program, you can get that program (even if another user has the file
checked out), copy the rungs, and then paste them into your file. Getting a file
eliminates accidental changes to the master file.
You can get the current version of a file or the files in an asset, or you can select an
earlier version. You can also get a file that is marked as checked out, even if you
have the file checked out.
FactoryTalk AssetCentre makes it easy to locate a file that you get by duplicating
the asset tree structure in folders and subfolders on your hard drive. Getting a file
duplicates the asset tree structure from the container or folder where you set the
working folder to the container or folder where the file you get is located.
The date and time a file is retrieved appears in the file history. To learn about how
Archive sets dates and times for files, see Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the
Archive chapter and click the Date and time settings topic.
Tip: To get read-only versions of files, you must have Get permission. See Step 3:
Change security settings for an asset on page 66.
1. In the asset tree, select the file or asset containing the files to retrieve and
click the Get button.
2. Complete the Get dialog box. The following options are available:
Override working folders Select this option to retrieve the file into a temporary working folder, instead of the
current working folder, for this Get operation only. Type the exact path of the
temporary working folder or click Browse to select the working folder location where
you would like to store the retrieved files.
To override the working folder, you must have Configure Personal Archive Working
Folders permission (see Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on
page 26) and Set Working Folders permission (see Step 3: Change security settings
for an asset on page 66).
4. Click OK. The file appears in your current working folder. The Get action
is shown in the file history unless you select to show version-related
activities.
Tip: To get a specific (labeled) version of a file, see Help. Select Help > Contents.
Open the Archive chapter and click the Label a file or binder version and Get a
read-only version of a file or binder topics.
You can also get a pinned version of a file, if there is one. For more information, see
Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Archive chapter and click the Pin or
unpin files or binders topic.
To learn about additional Archive tasks (for example, promoting, or deleting files
from the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Archive), also refer to Help. Open the Archive
chapter and click the desired topic.
Step 5: Open a file for viewing If you have set a working folder for a file, you can choose to open that file to view
its contents. This is helpful when you want to make sure you have selected the
correct file. Opening a file also allows you to copy its content.
When you open a file and have already placed a local copy of that file in the
working folder by either checking out or getting the file, the software program
associated with the file opens the file. To set a file association for a file, see Help.
Select Help > Contents. Open the Archive chapter and click the Set file
associations topic.
If you do not have a local copy of the file in your working folder when you choose
to open the file, FactoryTalk AssetCentre prompts you to either check out the file
for editing (see Step 2: Check out a file for editing on page 89) or Get a read-only
version of the file (see Step 4: Get a read-only version of a file on page 92). This
allows you to place a local copy of the file in your working folder and have the
associated software program open the file at the same time.
To open a file
1. In the asset tree, right-click the file and select Open Working Folder. You
can also double-click the file or select it in the asset tree and then at the top
of the Archive tab, click the file link:
If there is a copy of the file in your working folder, the file's associated
software program launches and opens the file.
Tip: If you do not have a working folder set for the file's asset, the message dialog box
Unable to Launch File appears instead of the File Retrieval Options dialog box.
See Step 1: Set a working folder on page 88.
If there is not a copy of the file in your working folder, complete the File Retrieval
Options dialog box to place the file in your working folder and then either
checking out or getting the file. For more information about checking out a file, see
Step 2: Check out a file for editing on page 89. For more information about getting
a file, see Step 4: Get a read-only version of a file on page 92.
If the message No program is associated with the specified file for this operation, see
If you cannot open a file on page 108.
2. Close the file when you are done viewing it. Any changes you make to an
open file will not be saved unless you check out the file from Archive. See
Step 2: Check out a file for editing on page 89.
If the automatic check-in feature is enabled, after done editing the file that
checked out from Archive, you will be asked if you need to save a new
version. For more information on automatic check-in, see Help. Select Help
> Contents, and navigate to the Options dialog box: File Associations
topic.
Quick Start steps for To manage the life cycle of Rockwell Automation hardware devices:
For more information, refer to Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Assets
Lifecycle chapter and click the desired topic.
Step 1: Synchronize life-cycle Synchronize life-cycle information in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server and
client with the data on the Rockwell Automation life cycle website . You can
status
synchronize the life-cycle information of either assets or asset inventory in the
AssetCentre server. The life-cycle synchronization is recommended to run during
server null time (time when no scheduled tasks or user interaction is taking place)
if possible. With the synchronization process being based on product ID or catalog
number quantity, it can take some time to complete based on the total collected,
and will require server resources during run time.
1. Select View > Assets Lifecycle, or click the Assets Lifecycle button.
1. Select View > Assets Lifecycle, or click the Assets Lifecycle button.
3. If you have used an asset inventory file before and don't want to use another
version, skip to Step 7.
If this is the first time to use an asset inventory file, the Asset Inventory tab
is empty. You need to specify an RAAI file. On the right of the Asset
Inventory File box, click .
4. On the left of the Select File dialog box, select an RAAI file in the asset tree
view.
5. On the right of the Select File dialog box, select an RAAI file version.
• Filter by label
Select this option to filter the RAAI files by label.
• Filter by version
Select this option to filter the RAAI files by version.
• Latest version
Select this option to use the latest version of the RAAI file.
6. Click OK.
Step 2: Refresh life-cycle status Refreshing life-cycle information only updates the data on the AssetCentre client
with the AssetCentre server. You can refresh the life-cycle information of either
assets or asset inventory on the AssetCentre client.
1. Select View > Assets Lifecycle, or click the Assets Lifecycle button.
Step 3: View detailed life-cycle In the asset list on the Asset or Asset Inventory tab, you can view the detailed
life-cycle status of devices, including:
status
• Product ID: product ID of a device.
• Product Description: product description of a device.
• Lifecycle Status: life-cycle status of a device.
• Discontinued Date: the announced discontinued date.
• Last Update Date: the last time when the life-cycle status was updated.
• Recommended Replacement Product: the recommended product to replace
the current one.
• Replacement Category: the nature of the replacement.
1. Select View > Assets Lifecycle, or click the Assets Lifecycle button.
Tip: For devices in the Active Mature, End of Life or Discontinued status, you can expand
the Replacement Information to view the recommended replacement product
and replacement category.
Tip: If you want to reopen the life-cycle window of an asset you just closed, click
another asset then click the one whose life-cycle window you want to open again.
Life-cycle statuses
In the asset list of Assets Lifecycle, there are five statuses appended to each asset,
showing their current life-cycle stage.
Status Description
None Indicates the life-cycle status is not available for the asset.
Active Most current offering within a product category.
Active Mature Product is fully supported, but a newer product or family exists. Gain value by migrating.
End of Life Discontinued date announced - actively execute migrations and last time buys. Product generally orderable until the discontinued date.1
Status Description
Discontinued New product no longer manufactured or procured.2 Repair/exchange services may be available.
1
Outages on specific items may occur prior to the Discontinued date.
2
Limited stock may be available in run-out mode, regionally.
Troubleshoot
If the client fails to start • Make sure the client computer is connected to the network and the
network is operational.
• Make sure your FactoryTalk AssetCentre server computer is running.
• Make sure the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Server service, IIS and SQL server
are all running on the server computer (and the database computer if
separate).
• Make sure the correct FactoryTalk Directory is specified. On the machine
running the client, select Start > All Programs > Rockwell Software >
FactoryTalk Tools > Specify FactoryTalk Directory Location.
• If your computer is not authenticated by a domain controller (for example,
if it is part of a workgroup instead), turn off the FactoryTalk single sign-in
feature. For information about single sign-in, see the FactoryTalk help file.
Select Start > All Programs > Rockwell Software > FactoryTalk Tools >
FactoryTalk Help.
• Make sure the server location setting is correct. On the server computer go
to Start > All Programs > Rockwell Software > FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server > Server Settings. The server location must be set in this utility,
NOT in the FactoryTalk Administration Console.
• Make sure the SQL Connection is set properly. On the server computer go
to Start > All Programs > Rockwell Software > FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server > Data Source Configuration.
• If the message The client and server versions are incompatible appears when
you attempt to start the FactoryTalk AssetCentre client, and the
2. On the Start menu, right-click the My Computer icon, and then click
Manage.
If you cannot enter Design • You might not have the appropriate permissions to enter Design mode. See
Mode Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
• Only one user in your system can be in Design mode at a time. If another
user is in Design mode, you will not be able to enter Design mode until that
user exits Design mode.
• The server might not be activated. To see if the server is activated, select
Help > About. Under Components, select FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server Features, and then below that select FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server. Activation information for the server appears on the right.
If the server needs to be activated, on the About dialog box, click Refresh. If
the server is still not activated, see the FactoryTalk Activation Manager
Help for more information.
If you cannot connect to FactoryTalk Linx, formerly known as RSLinx Enterprise, must be installed on the
PanelView Plus devices client computer to communicate with PanelView Plus operator interfaces. See the
FactoryTalk AssetCentre Installation Guide for information on installing
FactoryTalk Linx.
If you cannot connect to FactoryTalk Linx, formerly known as RSLinx Enterprise, must be installed on the
client computer to communicate with MobileView operator interfaces.
MobileView devices
FactoryTalk Linx must be version 5.71 or higher. See the FactoryTalk AssetCentre
If a schedule did not run You must make a schedule active for its status to be Waiting to Run or Running.
See Step 3: Run schedules on page 75.
If a schedule no longer appears Any user with Delete a schedule permission can delete any schedule from
FactoryTalk AssetCentre. You do not have to create a schedule to be able to delete
on the Schedules tab
that schedule. If you or another FactoryTalk AssetCentre user has permission and
deletes an asset from the asset tree, the schedule will be deleted. This occurs if an
asset is the starting point (the top level asset) of a schedule. The schedule cannot
be retrieved. You must add the device to the asset tree again and then recreate the
asset's schedule. For more information about deleting assets, see Help. Select Help
> Contents. Open the Assets chapter and click the Delete an asset topic.
If an asset is missing from a If you or another FactoryTalk AssetCentre user deletes an asset from the asset
tree, that asset will be removed from any schedules in which it was included. To
schedule
restore that asset to the schedule, you would have to add the asset back into the
container in the asset tree that is the starting point of the schedule. When you add
the asset back to the container, it will appear in the schedule again, but it will have
the default operation properties set under Tools > Options. If these are not the
desired properties, you can change the properties for that asset in that schedule.
See Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Schedules chapter and click the
Modify scheduled operation properties topic.
My schedule contains extra Devices meeting the necessary criteria will automatically be added to a scheduled
container as soon the device is added to the container in the asset tree. To exclude
devices that I don't want in the
assets from a schedule, disable the assets you do not want to include in the
schedule schedule. See Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Schedules chapter and click
the Enable or disable scheduled assets topic.
• Certain operations, such as Backup and Compare, may fail if the operation
requires that a device has a master file and it does not. To select which
version of the file in Archive will serve as the master file to the device, see
Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Assets chapter and click the Add
an asset topic.
• The RSLinx path on the client computer where the device's addressing
information was set may not match the RSLinx path on the agent computer
running the schedule. All computers in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre system
must have the same RSLinx drivers and paths.
• Scheduled events for Rockwell Automation Logix 5000 processors will fail
if FactoryTalk Security is enabled for that devices' programming software
(RSLogix 5000 versions 16 and earlier). The problem is fixed in RSLogix
5000 versions higher than 16. For RSLogix 5000 versions 16 and earlier,
running scheduled events requires single sign-on for these versions. This
issue does not affect other device's schedules (such as robots or PanelView
devices). If a schedule contains both Logix 5000 processors and other
devices, the scheduled event will only fail for those Logix 5000 processors
for which FactoryTalk Security is enabled in the programming software; the
event will complete for the other devices.
To configure the system so that scheduled operations will succeed even with
security enabled in the RSLogix software, see Help. Select Help > Contents.
Open the Welcome to FactoryTalk AssetCentre chapter and click the About
the configuration for security-enabled RSLogix products topic.
You will be unable to create a schedule for an asset that is to be the starting point
of a schedule if the asset isn't supported by the scheduled operation. Also, a
schedule will not include an asset that is not supported by the selected operation.
For example, if you have Disaster Recovery for Rockwell devices, but did not
purchase Disaster Recovery for Motoman Robots, you won't be able to create a
schedule for a Motoman robot, nor will a Motoman robot appear in a schedule for
its parent container.
If you are prompted to install An agent is a program capability (such as Disaster Recovery) that can be located
and run on a computer to help another computer complete a task. Agents or
agents when creating a Disaster
operations allow work to be distributed and shared among multiple computers to
Recovery schedule spread processing load and speed up operations. When a server needs an agent to
perform a task, it locates the computer running the operation and assigns the task
to that agent. The agent then reports the task's completion to the server.
If you receive a message to install agents or that no agents are installed, the
software cannot contact any agents (for example, Unable to create a new schedule ...
No licensed agents are available). The computers running the agents are not
currently available on the network, the agent software needs to be updated, or
there are no computers with agents installed on the network.
• When you create a Disaster Recovery schedule, make sure you have not
selected an invalid asset, such as a binder or a file. You cannot create any
schedules on a binder or file.
• Make sure you have selected a device asset for which you have the Disaster
Recovery capability. The Disaster Recovery capability operates only on
device assets for which you have purchased the Disaster Recovery capability.
You can get Disaster Recovery activation for Rockwell Automation devices,
for FANUC robots, and for Motoman robots. See the FactoryTalk
AssetCentre Installation Guide.
• Creating a Disaster Recovery schedule requires that at least one computer
on your network has the Disaster Recovery agent installed on it. If there are
no computers with the agent software installed, install the agent software.
See the topic "Install FactoryTalk AssetCentre agents" in the FactoryTalk
AssetCentre Installation Guide.
• If the agent is installed, make sure the computers on which the agent is
installed are running and available on your network and that the Disaster
Recovery capability is activated. See the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Installation
Guide.
• The agent software must be the same version as the server. To update the
agent software, see the topic "Install FactoryTalk AssetCentre agents" in the
FactoryTalk AssetCentre Installation Guide.
If you see the message "Failed This message appears if you do not have the RSLogix 5 or RSLogix 500
to create RSLogix 5 [or 500] programming software installed on the client computer on which you are
data [or program ladder] file specifying which files and data will be compared during a Backup and Compare
operation. Install the appropriate RSLogix programming software on the client
list"
computer or use a client computer that already has the programming software.
If the scheduled Disaster The agent that actually performs the operation may be busy, unavailable, or
uninstalled. If Waiting for Interface appears next to the scheduled assets in the
Recovery operation never
lower left pane of the Schedules tab and it never changes, then either all agents are
completes busy or no agents are online. You can check all schedules on the Schedules tab to
see whether any are running (and thus using the available agent or agents). You
can also check the status bar to see how many agent computers are connected to
the system.
If all agents are online, you may need to install the Disaster Recovery agent on
more computers or change the execution times so schedules are not running at the
same time. To do this, see the topic "Install FactoryTalk AssetCentre agents" in
the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Installation Guide.
Another reason can be that the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server has been updated,
but the software on the agent computer has not been updated. If the agent
software version is not compatible with the server software, the agent will not run.
A message is logged in the System Event log and the AssetCentre Event log. You
can also see the number of active agents appears in the status bar of the
FactoryTalk AssetCentre client. To update the agent software, see "Install
FactoryTalk AssetCentre agents" in the FactoryTalk AssetCentre Installation
Guide.
If e-mail notifications do not • Make sure you are using valid e-mail addresses. E-mail addresses must be in
standard SMTP format (for example, myaddress@domain.com). Other
reach their recipients
types of e-mail addresses are not handled by FactoryTalk AssetCentre.
• Check the Event log to make sure the scheduled operation is completing.
See Step 1: View Logs on page 78.
• Check your schedule definitions on the Schedules tab to make sure there
are e-mail addresses assigned to receive notifications. See Step 2: Set up
recipient lists for schedule results on page 73.
• Make sure the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server is set up to send e-mail.To
do this, log onto the FactoryTalk AssetCentre server computer, and then
select Start > Programs > Rockwell Software > FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server > Server Settings. Consult with your e-mail administrator for the
correct settings.
• If you are using a firewall (such as the Windows Firewall), make sure the
ports used to send e-mail traffic are open. Also make sure that SMTP
services are permitted to send traffic through your firewall.
If you cannot view a log • You might not have the appropriate permissions to view the specific log. See
Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
• Your server may not be activated. To see if the server is activated, select
Help > About. Under Components, select FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server Features and then in the left pane, select FactoryTalk AssetCentre
Server. Activation information on the server appears on the right.
If the server needs to be activated, on the About dialog box, click Refresh. If
the server is still not activated, refer to the FactoryTalk Activation Manager
Help and contact your system administrator.
If no data appears in a log • All logs. If no data appears in a log, you may not have permission to view
the log. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on
page 26. There might also be an error regarding your connection to the
server. See If the client cannot communicate with the server on page 102.
• Diagnostics and Health Log. Initially, only previously existing data
appears in the Diagnostics and Health Log if that data was imported from
the RSMACC Network Health Solution. This data is not updated by
FactoryTalk AssetCentre.
New data is logged in the Diagnostics and Health Log only if RSNetWorx
MD is installed on your system. Contact your system administrator.
If you cannot refresh a log If you try and refresh the data in the currently shown log and the message You do
not have permission to view the selected log appears, your permission to view the log
was removed after you shown the log. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for
FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
If you cannot show a previously If you try and show a log which you could view previously and the message You do
viewed log not have permission to view the selected log appears, your permission to view the log
was removed since you last viewed the log. See Step 3: Set Feature Security for
FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26.
If you cannot check in a file You may have changed an asset's working folder since checking out the file. Make
sure that the working folder points to the correct location of the checked-out file.
See Step 1: Set a working folder on page 88.
If you cannot open a file Before opening a file, you must retrieve an image of the file to the current working
folder or you will be prompted to either get a read-only copy of the file or check
out the file for editing. See Step 5: Open a file for viewing on page 94. If the
message No program associated with the specified file for this operation appears, you
need to specify the software program that should open the file. See Help. Select
Help > Contents. Open the Archive chapter and click the Set file associations
topic.
If the wrong program opens a FactoryTalk AssetCentre allows you to set file associations to determine the
software product that opens a file. The wrong file association may be set for a file
file
type. See Help. Select Help > Contents. Open the Archive chapter and click the
Set file associations topic.
If a button is not available If a button or field on the Archive tab is disabled, it generally means the operation
cannot be performed because the user doesn't have the required permission. See
Step 3: Set Feature Security for FactoryTalk AssetCentre on page 26. Also, the
asset state may not permit the operation. For example, you cannot check in a file
that has not been checked out.
If you performed a recursive If an asset's subfolder has its own working folder specified, files will be copied to
that working folder rather than the working folder of the asset. See Step 1: Set a
check out and the subfolders
working folder on page 88.
didn't copy
You can view the Rockwell Automation End-User License Agreement ("EULA")
by opening the License.rtf file located in your product's install folder on your hard
drive.
A full list of all open source software used in this product and their corresponding
licenses can be found in the OPENSOURCE folder included with this product's
Release Notes. The default installed location of these licenses is C:\Program Files
(x86)\Common
Files\Rockwell\AssetCentre\ReleaseNotes\OPENSOURCE\index.htm.
Other Licenses
TALLCOMPONENTS B.V. ("TC") is the sole and exclusive owner of all right,
title and interest worldwide, including in countries where such rights have not yet
been used, exercised or registered, in the TC Software and you will not directly or
indirectly question, attack, contest or in any other manner impugn the value,
validity or enforceability of TC Software or any other software from TC. You will
not remove, alter, cover or obfuscate any patent or copyright notice or other
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Software.
The Software is Copyright ©1994-2018 Xceed Software Inc., all rights reserved.
The Software is protected by Canadian and United States copyright laws,
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Except for the limited licenses granted herein, Xceed retains exclusive ownership
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Propack Data, Rockwell, Rockwell Automation, Rockwell Software,
Other Trademarks
All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders and are hereby
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Warranty
This product is warranted in accordance with the product license. The product’s
performance may be affected by system configuration, the application being
performed, operator control, maintenance, and other related factors. Rockwell
Automation is not responsible for these intervening factors. The instructions in
this document do not cover all the details or variations in the equipment,
procedure, or process described, nor do they provide directions for meeting every
possible contingency during installation, operation, or maintenance. This
product’s implementation may vary among users.
This document is current as of the time of release of the product; however, the
accompanying software may have changed since the release. Rockwell Automation,
Inc. reserves the right to change any information contained in this document or
the software at any time without prior notice. It is your responsibility to obtain the
most current information available from Rockwell when installing or using this
product.
Environmental compliance
In addition, we offer multiple support programs for installation, configuration, and troubleshooting. For more information, contact your local
distributor or Rockwell Automation representative, or visit http://www.rockwellautomation.com/services/online-phone.
Installation assistance
If you experience a problem within the first 24 hours of installation, review the information that is contained in this manual. You can contact
Customer Support for initial help in getting your product up and running.
United States Contact your distributor. You must provide a Customer Support case number (call the phone number above to obtain one) to
your distributor to complete the return process.
Outside United States Please contact your local Rockwell Automation representative for the return procedure.
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Rockwell Automation Publication - FTAC-GR002D-EN-E - February 2018 Copyright © 2019 Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.